Friday

Jul 12, 2013 at 12:01 AMJul 12, 2013 at 10:11 AM

It's difficult to ignore the similarities between Republican legislators and their Democratic predecessors. Both seem to have perfected the art of sneaking controversial provisions into bills without prior notice to the public. The latest example is a bill that would impose regulations on abortion clinics that only one now meets, making abortion inaccessible to many women in North Carolina.

It's difficult to ignore the similarities between Republican legislators and their Democratic predecessors. Both seem to have perfected the art of sneaking controversial provisions into bills without prior notice to the public. The latest example is a bill that would impose regulations on abortion clinics that only one now meets, making abortion inaccessible to many women in North Carolina.

Without letting on whether he would veto the bill, Gov. Pat McCrory said this week that he's committed to protecting women's health but "there is a fine line between safety measures and restrictions." He hinted that he has some concerns about parts of the bill that could impede access but would not let on whether he would veto House Bill 695 should it arrive on his desk unchanged.

He was more emphatic last week when he objected to how Senate Republican leaders went about dropping the abortion provision into an unnecessary and completely unrelated bill prohibiting state courts from imposing or enforcing Islamic law. The move came in committee late on July 2, the day before the Honorables were set to recess for the Fourth of July holiday, and came as a surprise to many observers.

One of the sponsors, Sen. Buck Newton, R-Wilson, said that gee, sometimes these things just happen and don't come together until the last minute. Conveniently, lobbyists for anti-abortion groups were at the committee meeting where the revisions were debated. Opponents and the general public were not told the abortion provisions would be discussed.

The rewritten bill would require abortion clinics to meet the same standards as ambulatory surgery centers, force doctors to sit with the patient throughout any abortion procedure, whether surgical or medically induced. The bill also included a ban on using abortion as a sex selection tool, a provision that will be nearly impossible to enforce, and would bar even private insurance companies from covering abortions.

Sen. Bill Rabon, R-Brunswick, was the lone Republican to vote against the bill on its second reading but was listed as having an excused absence from the final vote, along with three other Republicans and five Democrats.

As the governor noted, this is the way the Democrats used to do things when they were in power. Instead of abiding by a promise to be more transparent, Republican leaders seem to be content to adopt the same methods as their predecessors, being open about what they're doing only when it is convenient.

Supporters of the bill made much of the state's order to close a recently opened abortion clinic that failed to comply with regulations regarding banking blood and doing a required blood test on patients. Which addresses the point: Abortion clinics are already heavily regulated, and doctors who perform abortions are unlike their peers in that the Honorables – most of whom have no medical training – have seen fit to tell them exactly what procedures to perform and to provide a script to read to their patients, whether they want to hear it or not.

Members of the House will sit down with state officials to discuss possible changes to address the concerns of the governor and Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Aldona Wos.

There should be some. The proposed rules are aimed not at protecting women, but at shutting down abortion clinics – a move that could backfire and endanger women, some of whom will be desperate enough to self-induce or seek out an illegal abortionist. And the proposed restrictions do nothing to help women who decide to go through with their pregnancy and raise their child. In fact, many of the cuts to social programs may leave a weaker safety net for many new mothers.

A more constructive focus for legislators would be on policies that make it easier to raise a child, or provide strong financial support for adoptions – including prenatal care and support for the mother. But these options do not address every situation. Each woman is different, and each pregnancy is different.

This legislation oversteps. Worse, the Honorables apparently have decided that the best way to push through their agenda is by adopting the methods that they once denounced.

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